184
Matt
Anxiety gripped me as I drove through the heart of Blue Scale’s city. My thoughts were a mess. Doubt and uncertainty seemed to be making everything I was doing harder than it needed to be. My fingers twitched, restless, as I anxiously headed towards the café Dagon agreed to meet me at. He’d been off visiting home, so it was the best time to meet with him outside of the Blue Moon Territory.
I got to the café, ordered a giant cup of shifter strength coffee, and settled in somewhere, sort of visible to wait. My stomach was in knots as I awaited Dagon’s arrival. I couldn’t believe I was doing this, but I didn’t know what else to do in this situation.
Oren was insane. He was more insane than I ever remembered him being.
Tony might not have seen it yet, but it had to only be a matter of time…
Unless he lost his mind, too. I bit my lip. The future seemed so full of danger and uncertainty. The door opened, and I heard the hostess greet someone brightly. Then, footsteps came towards me.
I looked up at Dagon. His gaze was sharp and assessing, making me feel even more uneasy, but he had a cup of something, so that had to mean he didn’t plan on telling me to fuck off.
I swallowed hard, trying to push down the lump of apprehension in my throat.
“Hey,” I greeted, my voice a touch shaky. “Thanks for… For coming.”
Dagon nodded in response as he sat across from me. A wave of light and quiet wrapped around us as he sat back, lounging in his seat, and took a sip of his drink.
His expression was neutral.
“What’s this about, Matt?”
I shifted in my seat, struggling to find the right words. How could I explain the turmoil that had consumed my family, the suffocating grip of Oren’s presence?
“It’s about Oren,” I finally managed, my voice a mere whisper.
Dagon’s eyebrows lifted in curiosity. “What about him?”
I took a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves. “He’s... he’s losing control.”
I stopped and shook my head. “I don’t think he’s ever had control.”
“An astute observation.”
My lips twitched. “He’s consumed by his desire for dominance, and Tony... Tony’s getting pulled into it. It’s like he’s a different person now.”
I glanced at him. “I know you… haven’t really cared much about either of us. We haven’t ever really made it easy—”
“Before or after you attacked my sister?”
I winced. “Both.”
“And?”
I bit my lip. “He’s… I don’t know…”
I looked down, searching for the words. What was I asking for? What did I expect?
“I… I’m scared,” I said, barely whispering the words. “I don’t know… I’m scared.”
The knot in my stomach grew uncomfortably tight. My hands were shaking as I felt the realization starting to dawn on me.
Fear.
I hadn’t felt fear like this since we went against Oren all those years ago, and that hadn’t been anything like this. No, this was worse.
Tony had been on my side then. Now, I wasn’t sure whose side he was on.
“Drink this.”
I took the vial he gave me and tossed it into my mouth without question. It was minty and oddly refreshing. Some of the tension seemed to ease. I looked up, and Dagon’s gaze bore into mine, his scrutiny almost unnerving.
“What do you want from me? And when was the last time you slept?”
My throat felt tight, the weight of my plea heavy on my shoulders.
“Help,” I said, my voice barely audible. “I-I need help, but I don’t know what kind of help and what for or if it’s possible. If it’s too late to get help. And I have no fucking idea.”
I shuddered and finished my drink. Dagon’s eyes widened. “It’s hard to sleep when you think your brother is turning into a psychopath and there is a psychopath in your house again… Worse than ever. It was like going to jail just… made him worse… He’s dragging the rest of the pack in this spiral, and I… I…”
My eyes burned. The results of that test flashed through my eyes, the registration information. Things I still didn’t understand or even know how to understand filled my mind. I could barely breathe, yet it felt distant and growing more out of reach until I couldn’t even panic.
“What… did you give me?”
“A medical grade calming potion.” I looked up at him. His expression had softened. I saw a glimmer of understanding in his eyes. “You looked like you’ve been under more stress than anyone should be… especially given your condition.”
“Condition?” I asked. “You make it sound like I’m sick.”
He waved his hand. “We’ll get to that. You’re doing the right thing by seeking help, Matt,” he said, his tone surprisingly gentle. “Oren is a psycho, and he has enough power to start another war with just a little nudge.”
“Am I sick?” I asked. A weak thread of panic went through me and vanished.
“No,” he said. Dagon’s lips quirked into a small smile. “Not exactly. How’s your head?”
I frowned. “My head?”
“You’ve been suffering from migraines, haven’t you?”
I blinked at him. “How could you have known that?”
He smirked, and a secret danced in his eyes. “I’ve been around a long time, Matt. I know a few things.”
He sat back. “As for the psychos in your house, that’s not an easily solved problem unless you plan to kill them.”
I went still. Horror, rage, and panic went through me. I bared my teeth at him.
“What kind of fucked up suggestion is that?”
Dagon’s gaze held a mix of skepticism and concern as he listened to me. “I’m maybe one wrong move away from death, and you say to kill my brother and my—”
I went still, frowning at the feeling and the twinge of pain in my head.
Oren. I had been calling him Oren all this time. He hadn’t been my father in so long, yet just now, I felt the undeniable sense of loyalty, the urge to defend him…
Even though I knew that Oren would kill me without hesitation if he thought it served him.
“How’s your head?”
I pulled out my shades, hoping it would help block out the light. “What’s… What’s wrong with me?”
“You’re sick.”
“You just said that I wasn’t.”
“I said you weren’t exactly sick,” he said, watching me. “Now, how’s your head?”
I blinked. I could practically feel his doubt radiating off him as he stared at me. I shifted uneasily under his scrutiny, feeling a bead of sweat forming at the base of my neck. My head was throbbing. Something was urging me to lie, but I didn’t.
“It hurts.”
“Like a screwdriver through your head?”
I nodded.
“Any urges to lie to me?”
I blinked and nodded with difficulty. The pain increased.
Dagon took another sip. “Tell me what happened to the Juniper Pack rep.”
I winced. “I… It was after Tony got a letter stating we weren’t alphas of the pack anymore…”
Dagon’s eyebrows shot up. “You aren’t the alphas anymore?”
I shook my head, pressing the heel of my hand between my eyebrows and trying to work out the tension that seemed to be building the more I wanted to tell him the truth.
“Why do I feel the need to lie to you… You’re our liaison.”
“We’ll get to that too, I’m sure. You were saying. What happened after the letter?”
“He… almost killed them all. Not just the Juniper guy, but—” I hissed as the pain grew tight like a vice around my head. Something was thundering in my mind, screaming at me, yanking and pulling.
I felt Dagon’s hand on my head, pressing down gently until my head rested on the cool surface of the table. It felt a little better. Then, warmth radiated through me. A soft sound like a lullaby seemed to hum through me.
“That’s…. amazing,” I groaned as the pain ebbed.
“I bet. You looked like you were going to pass out… The reps?”
“He dragged them outside and was going to let them bleed out on the steps… I managed to get them to the hospital, but they’re in critical condition.”
“… do you remember how you managed to get them to the hospital?”
I blinked sleepily. “How? I put them in the car.”
“Entrails and all?”
I tried to lift my head, but he pressed his hand on my head firmly and hushed me.
“Don’t try to get up yet. That pain is going to put you out if you do.”
“How’d you know he’d gutted them?”
“I got a report, of course. Inter-Pack Misconduct. They’re looking for their representatives. Oren’s power games aren’t doing him any favors.”
My jaw clenched as I thought about those wounded representatives, the blood staining the steps of our home.
“You said… he could start a war?”
“Blue Moon Wolves, especially the men of the line, tend to be warmongerers. Oren happens to be in a position to do more damage now than he’s ever done or any of his predecessors have done.”
“How so?”
He sighed. “We’ll get to that… We’ll work on how you got them there, too, for now, just tell me what you want from me.”
“Help.”
“You don’t even know what help would entail?”
“Not a clue.”
He sighed again, his voice softened. “I would have liked it more if you had just remained an asshole… Though I supposed she was right.”
“She?”
He hummed. “Your mother.”
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
